A theoretical model of soma-to-germline transmission of transposable elements to build new gene regulatory sequences

TL;DR

This paper proposes a new theoretical model suggesting transposable elements facilitate soma-to-germline genetic information transfer, influencing gene regulation, by combining Lamarckian and Darwinian evolution concepts, supported by evidence and experimental proposals.

Contribution

It introduces a novel model of natural selection involving soma-to-germline transposable element transfer, integrating Lamarckian and Darwinian ideas.

Findings

Hypothesizes transposable elements as vectors of soma-to-germline genetic flow.

Suggests transposable elements shape gene regulatory regions.

Provides evidence and proposes experiments to test the hypothesis.

Abstract

Transposable elements are DNA sequences that can move around to different positions in the genome. During this process, they can cause mutations, and lead to an increase in genome size. Despite representing a large genomic fraction, transposable elements have no clear biological function. This work builds upon a previous model, to propose a new concept of natural selection which combines Lamarckian and Darwinian elements. Transposable elements are hypothesised to be the vector of a flow of genetic information from soma to germline, that shapes gene regulatory regions across the genome. The paper introduces the concept, presents and discusses the body of evidence in support of this hypothesis, and suggests an experiment to test it.